Elaine Norris

Elaine Joan (Henson) Norris passed away on Wednesday, May 27, 2015, at Midland Hospice House in Topeka after a short illness. A memorial service will be held at 1:00 pm on Monday, June 1, 2015, at Lexington Park Independent Living, 1011 SW Cottonwood Court. Interment at Greenwood Cemetery in Council Grove, Kansas, will be at a later date. Elaine was born May 11, 1924, in Council Grove, Kansas, the oldest of nine children of Newton Trowbridge and Mable Ella Wodke Henson. She married William Robert Norris on July 29, 1947, when they eloped while visiting her aunt and uncle in Checotah, Oklahoma. They were married for 29 years before his death in 1977. Elaine attended Council Grove area schools through eighth grade, when she left school to work to help support her family. As a young woman, she worked at various jobs as a "mother's helper" doing housework and childcare, as a nurse's aide at a private nursing home in Council Grove, and at Wadsworth Hospital in Leavenworth. After moving to Topeka and having children, she was a homemaker for many years. She returned to work as a nurse's aide in her middle 40s, then obtained both her GED and Nursing Home Administrator's license, passing both exams in the same week. Elaine was administrator of Brookwood Nursing Home in Topeka for several years. After her husband's death, she attended LPN school at Kaw Area Vocational Technical School and worked at St. Francis Hospital in Topeka. She retired from St. Francis Hospital and did private duty nursing for many years. Elaine was a lifetime member of the Order of Eastern Star. Her happiest times were spent fishing, bird watching, playing Scrabble, and spending time with family, especially grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Her West 28th Street and Lexington Park neighbors and friends held special places in her heart. In addition to her husband, she was preceded in death by her parents, her stepson Jerry Alan Norris, five siblings and two honorary grandchildren, Ty and Heather Blankenship. Survivors include two daughters, Robbie Strahm (Mahlon), Baldwin City, and Billie Norris, Topeka; one son, Scott Norris (Kelly), Topeka; seven grandchildren, Christine Norris Seelbach, April Davies (Lee Kitazi), Brooke Davies Riffel (Brandon), Lance Strahm (Kasey), Jill Voigtschild (Chris), Justin Norris (Stacey), Jeffrey Norris, and Katelynn Norris; eight great grandchildren; siblings Clara Metcalfe, Tom Henson, and Judy Ezell Wallace; daughter-in-law Kathryn Norris Campbell; sisters-in-law JoAnne Henson and Bernice Henson; and numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Midland Hospice, Audubon Society, or a charity of the donor's choice.